Sheet material pelletizing apparatus and method



V. V. MASON Aug. 10', 1954 SHEET MATERIAL PELLETIZING APPARATUS ANDMETHOD Filed Feb. 5, 1951 a H llmfl INVENTOR. VEY/VE. V MA 301v,

BY $444M ATTORNEY- Patented Aug. 10, 1954 OFFICE SHEET MATERIALPELLETIZING APPA- RATUS AND METHOD Veyne V. Mason, Los AngelesyCalif.

Application February 5, 1951, Serial No. 209,481

The present invention relates to the manufacture of pellets or balls ofcrumpled sheet material, and has been developed particularly for themanufacture of pellets of crumpled paper for use in the filtering ofoil. 7

In my copending application Serial Number 160,414 on Engine Oil Filter,filed May 6, 1950, nowPatent No. 2,549,698, April 17, 1951, I havedisclosed a new and highly eilective oil filtering device in which thefilter medium is formed of sheet paper crumpled into pellet form. ,Alsodisclosed, but not claimed, are a method and apparatus for forming suchpaper pellets. The pres ent application includes a more complete showingof my pellet forming method and apparatus, and constitutes acontinuation-in-part of the former. application as to its methodandapparatus disclosures. I Briefly, the invention contemplates forming apellet from a sheet of paper or other material by first deforming andprogressively constricting the sheet toward an axis to form 2.preferably elongated folded mass, and then compacting that masslongitudinally of the axis into a pellet of crumpled sheet material..,-During the first or constricting step of theprocess, the sheet may bedeformed circularly about a central portion to produce folds extendingoutwardly in all directions from that portion, and then progressivelyconstricted to the desired elongated shape in a manner much like thefolding of an umbrella. As will appear, such circular deformation andfolding may be easily but very effectively produced by merely forcingthe sheet through an opening in a forming unit of a transverse dimensionsmaller than the sheet. To assure proper folding and avoid tearing ofthe sheet by too abrupt constriction at the opening, the forming unitmay comprise a funnel-lik member gradually converging from a relativelywide entrance end to a constricted exit end.

For most effective pellet formation, I prefer to carry out thecomp-action step within a compaction chamber, by which the material ispositively confined againstlateral expansion. A force is first exertedagainst a sheet at the outside of the chamber for displacing the sheetinto the chamber, and the compaction force 'iszthen exerted against thematerialwithin the chamber. The chamber may be in the form of anelongated barrel or cylinder, into which the sheet is inserted by aninsertion plunger, and within which it is then compacted into pelletform by a compaction plunger. The funnel-like forming unit may convergetoward the entranceend of the Claims. '(01. 93-4) 2 chamber forprogressively constricting the sheet into an elongated umbrella-likefolded mass as it is displaced toward the chamber.

The compaction plunger carries out its compaction operation by relativemovement toward an inner transverse wall of the chamber. 7 As willappear, I prefer to provide the compaction plunger and this innerchamber wall with opposed correspondingly cavitated surfaces adapted toform the pellets into a desired ball shape during the compactionprocess. Also, this inn-er wall and the rest of the chamber aredesirably mounted for relative movement in a manner to effect removal ofa compacted pellet from the chamber after its formation.

In the preferred form of the invention, the apparatus includes a pair ofrelatively removable body sections, one of which carries a portion ofthe compaction chamber, and the other of which carries the insertion andcompaction plungers. In a first relative position of the sections, theinsertion plunger is movable into the chamber to displace a sheetthereinto, while in a second relative position the compaction plunger ismovable into the chamber to compact the material.

The above and other features and objects of the present invention willbe better understood from the following detailed description of thetypical embodiment illustrated in the accompanying drawing; in which:

Fig. 1 is a front view of a device for forming balls of crumpled paperor other sheet material;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of'the device shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged vertical section through the funnel-like formingmember as the paper is being forced through it;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical section through the formingmember and compaction chamber and showing th paper as it is beingdisplaced downwardly into the compaction chamber; and r Fig. 5 is anenlarged fragmentary vertical section through the lower portion of thecompaction chamber and showing the compaction plunger at the end of itsdownward stroke.

The illustrated ball forming device includes a horizontal base It, tothe upper side of which is mounted a frame member H, havin a pair ofspaced upstanding side portions 12 and an upper horizontal portion IS.The upstandin portions 12 of this frame member may be secured to thebase in any suitable manner, as by bolts .14. To the rear of framemember H; base H1 carries an upwardly projecting bearing post. It, bywhich forwardly projecting arm I6 is mounted for swinging or rotationalmovement between its full line paper insertion position and its brokenline compaction position. The swinging movement of arm |6 is limited atthese two positions by a pair of stops I1 and I8 mounted to the base, asby bolts l9. The forwardmost portion of arm I6 is formed into a handleby which the arm is manually movable between its two positions.

In the illustrated form of the invention, the compaction chambercomprises two separately formed sections, including an upper verticallyelongated cylinder 28 carried by arm 16, and a bottom wall section 2|mounted in the base. When arm I6 is in its broken line position, thelower end of cylinder 2E3 is closed by bottom wall section 2| to form aclosed-end compaction chamber, within which the paper is compacted toits ultimate pellet form. Cylinder 2|] is guided for vertical movementwithin a bushing I40, which is received in a bore 22 in arm l6 andpositioned in the bore by set screw 23. At its upper end, cylinder 20has an annular flange 24 by which its downward movement is limited atthe illustrated position. Spaced beneath arm l6, cylinder 20 rigidlycarries an external ring 25 against which coil sprin 26 acts toyieldingly urge the cylinder downwardly. Ring 25 carries a forwardlyprojecting trigger element 21 by which cylinder 20 is manually movableupwardly against the tendency of spring 26, to permit removal of thecompacted ball from the chamber.

The lower section or bottom wall 2| of the compaction chamber isreceived within a recess 28 in base It) beneath the broken linecompaction position of cylinder 20. Opposite the lower end of cylinder20, the upper surface of section 2| con,

tains a hemispherical cavity 29 of a, diameter correspondingsubstantially to the internal diameter of cylinder 20. This cavityserves to shape the lower half of a paper ball compacted in the chamber.

At a location above the full line insertion position of cylinder 2|],the frame member carries, as through a bracket 30, a downwardlyconverging funnel-like forming member 3|. The lower restricted end 32 ofthis member is directed toward the open upper end of cylinder 20.

Above forming member 3|, the upper horizontal portion l3 of frame membercarries a bearing 33, within which an insertion plunger 34 is guided forvertical movement. Plunger 34 is downwardly movable through formin unit3| and into cylinder 20 of the compaction chamber by the exertion of adownward force against knob 35 at the upper end of the plunger. Coilspring 36, surrounding the plunger, normally urges it upwardly to itsFig. l retracted position. As seen best in Fig. 4, insertion plunger 34is of a diameter sufficiently smaller than the internal diameter ofcylinder 2!) to permit reception of the folded paper radially betweenthe plunger and cylinder during the plunger dow nstroke. The lower end31 of insertionplunger 34 is smoothly rounded, as shown, to avoidpuncturing the paper during the plunger down-stroke.

A compaction plunger 38 is mounted by a frame carried bearin 39 fordownward movement into cylinder 20 when the cylinder and arm are intheir broken line compaction positions. This plunger is actuabledownwardly by an upper knob 49, and is normally urged to its upperretracted position by coil spring 4|. The diameter of compaction plunger38 corresponds substantially to the internal diameter of cylinder 20, sothat downcylinder '20.

ward movement of the plunger within the cyli'rlder serves to compact thepreviously inserted paper into the Fig. 5 pellet form. The lower end ofplunger 38 is hemispherically cavitated at 42 in correspondence withcavity 29 in the chamber bottom Wall 2|, to shape the compacted pelletof paper into a substantially spherical ball.

In preparing for a ball forming operation, arm I6 is swung to its fullline insertion position, and a sheet of paper or other sheet material 43is placed across the upper end of forming member 3| (see Fig. 1). Whenthe pellets being formed are to be used in the filtering of oil, thesheet 43 may typically comprise a square sheet of newsprint paper ofabout five inches on each side. With the paper thus disposed acrossmember 3|, downward movement of plunger 34 forces the paper downwardlythrough member 3| and into During its movement through funnel-likemember 3|, the paper is progressively constricted in a manner formingincreasingly deepening folds 44 in the paper extendin longitudinallyalong the plunger (see Fig. 3). The paper is ultimately reduced to anelongated folded mass, as seen in Fig. 4, and is displaced into cylinder2|! in that elongated condition. Plunger 34 is then released for upwardmovement to its retracted position under the influence of spring 36.

With the elongated folded mass of paper contained within cylinder 20,arm I6 and the cylinder are swung to their broken line compactionpositions above bottom wall 2|. The compaction plunger 38 is thendisplaced downwardly within the cylinder to longitudinally compact thepaper into the Fig. 5 ball shaped form. After plunger 38 has beenpermitted to return upwardly, trigger 21 may be actuated to elevatecylinder 23 away from chamber bottom wall 2|, toexpose the paper ballfor removal from cavity 29 in the bottom wall. Should the paper ballstick within cylinder 20 as it is moved upwardly, plunger 38 may againbe actuated downwardly through the cylinder to forcibly eject the ball.

I claim:

1. Apparatus for forming pellets of crumpled sheet material comprising acompaction chamber having an open end, a funnel-like forming unitconverging toward said open end of the chamber in one condition of theapparatus, means for forcing a sheet of material through the unit forprogressive constriction thereby into an elongated folded mass and theninto the chamber in a constricted condition, said chamber, unit andmeans being constructed to form folds in said material extendinglongitudinally of said mass uponsaid forcing of the material throughsaid unit and into the chamber, a member then relatively movable in saidchamber and acting by said relative movement to longitudinally compactthe material while confined by the chamber, and means mounting-saidmember for said movement.

2. Apparatus for forming pellets of crumpled sheet material comprising acompaction cylinder having an open end, a funnel-like forming unitconverging toward said open end of the cylinder in one condition of theapparatus, a first plunger of a transverse dimension smaller than saidcylinder and mounted for movement axially through said forming unit andinto the cylinder to force a sheet of material through the unit forprogressive-con'striction thereby and then into the cylinder, meansforming a transversely extending wall substantially closing saidcylinder at the end opposite said open end, and a second plunger thenmovable into the cylinder toward said inner wall thereof and acting bysaid movement to compact the material into pellet form while confined bythe chamber, means mounting said second plunger for said movement, saidsecond plunger and inner wall of the cylinder having opposedhemisphericalcavities for forming the compacted material into anessentially spherical shape. I

3. Apparatus for forming pellets of crumpled sheet material comprising apair of body sections relatively movable between first and secondpositions, a compaction chamber having an open end and including aportion carried by a first one of said sections, means for exertingagainst a sheet of material a force for displacing it through said endand into the chamber in a constricted condition, said means beingpositioned for so displacingthe sheet when the sections are in saidfirst relative position, and a member carried by the second section andrelatively movable in said chamber in a manner compacting the materialwhile confined by the chamber, and means mounting said member for saidmovement when the sections are in said second relative position.

4. Apparatus for forming pellets of crumpled sheet material comprising apair of body sections relatively movable between first and secondpositions, a compaction chamber having an open end and including aportion carried by 'a first one of said sections, a funnel-like formingunit converging toward said open end of the chamber when the sectionsare in said first relative position, a first plunger carried by saidsecond section for exerting against a sheet of material disposed acrosssaid funnel-like unit a force for displacing said sheet through the unitand into the chamber, said plunger being positioned for so displacingthe sheet when the sections are in said first relative position, asecond plunger carried by the second section and relatively movable insaid chamber in a manner compacting the material while confined by thechamber, means mounting said second plunger for said movement when thesections are in said second relative position. 7

5. Apparatus for forming pellets of crumpled sheet materialcomprising atubular compaction barrel, a member forming a transversely extendingwall near one end of said barrel, means for exerting against a sheet ofmaterial at the opposite end of the barrel a force for displacing itthereinto in a constricted condition, and a compaction member inaddition to said means relatively movable into said opposite end of thebarrel and toward said first mentioned member in a manner compacting thematerial into pellet form while confined by the chamber, said firstmember and barrel being relatively movable axially of the barrel adistance sufilcient to remove the pellet from the barrel.

6. Apparatus for forming pellets of crumpled sheet material comprising aframe, a member mounted to said frame for rotational movement betweenfirst and second positions and containing an elongated tubularcompaction barrel, an element forming in said second position of themember a wall extending transversely of the barrel near one end thereof,a funnel-like forming unitcarried by the frame and converging toward theopposite end of the barrel in said first position of the member, aplunger mounted for reciprocation relative to the frame and positionedfor movement through the forming unit and intothe chamber when themember is in said first position, said member acting to force a sheet of6. material initially disposed across the forming unit through said unitfor constriction thereby and then into the chamber, and a secondreciprocable plunger movable into the chamber toward said transversewall when the member is in said second position and acting by saidmovement to compact the sheet into pellet form while con-, fined by thechamber, said second plunger and transverse wall containing opposedsubstantially hemi-spherical cavities for forming the compacted materialinto a ball shaped pellet, and said wall element and barrel beingrelatively movable for removing the pellet from the barrel.

7. The method that comprises progressively deforming and constricting asheet of material to- Ward an axis and from all sides of said axis, andthen compacting said constricted material longitudinally of said axiswhile retaining the material against lateral expansion.

8. The method that comprises forcing a sheet of material through aconverging funnel-like forming unit to progressively constrict thematerial into an elongated folded mass, and then longitudinallycompacting said elongated mass While retaining it against lateralexpansion.

9. The method of forming a pellet that comprises progressively andessentially circularly constricting a sheet of material into anelongated folded mass, then longitudinally compacting said mass into apellet of crumpled sheet materiaLlaterally retaining a portion of saidmass against transverse expansion during said compaction, and formingthe pellet into an essentially spherical ball during its compaction.

10. The method of forming a pellet that comprises forcing a sheet ofmaterial through a converging funnel-like forming unit to progressivelyconstrict the sheet into an elongated folded mass, displacing saidelongated mass into an elongated tubular compaction chamber, and thenlongitudinally compacting said mass while retained by the chamberagainst lateral expansion.

11. Apparatus for forming pellets of crumpled sheet material including acompaction chamber having an open end, means for displacing a sheet ofmaterial through said end and into the chamber, means at said end of thechamber acting to progressively crumple said material into an elongatedfolded mass having folds extending longitudinally of the mass upon saiddisplacement of the material into said chamber, and means then operableto longitudinally crumple and compact the material While confined by thechamber, said apparatus including means operable to exert against thecompacted material a force for ejecting it from the chamber.

12. Apparatus for forming pellets of crumpled sheet material comprisinga compaction chamber having a tubular side wall section with an openend, means for displacing a sheet of material into said chamber throughsaid open end thereof, means at said end of the chamber acting toprogressively crumple said material into an elongated folded mass havingfolds extending longitudinally of the mass upon said displacement of thematerial into said chamber, and a member then movable into the chamberand acting by said movement to longitudinally crumple said mass, saidapparatus including a member having a portion movable through saidtubular section of the chamber to eject the compacted materialtherefrom.

13. Apparatus including a forming unit containing a throat ofprogressively decreasing transverse dimension, and means operable to ad-Vance a sheet of material through said throat to progressivelytransversely crumple the material into an elongated folded mass, saidforming unit and means being constructed to form folds in said materialextending longitudinally of said mass upon said advancement of thematerial through said throat, said apparatus including means engagingsaid elongated folded mass at spaced locations therealong. and exertinglongitudinal crumpling force thereagainst.

14. Apparatus including a forming unit containing a throat ofprogressively decreasing transverse dimension, and a plunger movableinto said throat to advance a sheet of material therethrough and therebyprogressively transversely crumple the material into an elongated foldedmass, said forming unit and plunger being constructed to form folds insaid material extending longitudinally of said mass upon saidadvancement of the material through said throat,

said apparatus including means engaging said elongated folded mass atspaced locations therealong and exerting longitudinal crumpling forcethereagainst.

15. Apparatus including a forming unit containing a throat ofprogressively decreasing transverse dimension, and means operable toadvance a sheet of material through said throat to progressivelytransversely crumple the material into an elongated folded mass, saidforming unit and means being constructed to form folds in said materialextending longitudinally of said mass upon said advancement of thematerial through said throat, said apparatus including a pair ofcompaction members then relatively movable toward each other and againstopposite ends of said mass of material and acting by said movement tolongitudinally crumple the material.

16. Apparatus comprising a compaction chamber having an open end, aforming unit containing a throat of progressively decreasing transversedimension directed toward said end of the chamber, a first plungermovable axially through said throat and into the chamber and acting bysaid movement to advance a sheet of material through the unit forprogressive transverse constriction thereby into an elongatedfoldedlmass and then into the chamber, said forming unit and plungerbeing constructed to form folds in said material extendinglongitudinally of said mass upon said advancement of the materialthrough said throat, and a second plunger then movable into the chamberand acting by said movement to longitudinally compact said mass ofmaterial, and means mounting said plungers for said movements.

17. Apparatus as recited in claim 1, including a member having a portionmovable through said chamber and acting by said movement to eject thecompacted material therefrom, and means mounting said member for saidmovement.

18. The method comprising engaging a sheet of material essentiallycircularly about an axis and progressively and essentially circularlycrumpling and constricting said material toward the axis, and thencrumpling said material longitudinally of said axis while retaining thematerial against lateral expansion.

19. The method that-comprises forcing a sheet of material through anopening whose maximum transverse dimension is smaller than the smallestdimension of the sheet in the plane thereof to progressively constri'ctthe material into an elongated folded mass, and then longitudinallycrumpling and compacting :said elongated mass while retaining .itagainst lateral expansion.

20. The method as recited in claim 7., including laterally retainingsaid constricted material along its entire length against transverseexpansion during said longitudinal compaction.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 2,057,243 May Oct. 13, 1936 2,105A12 Edwards Jan. 11, 19382,106,864 Balton Feb. 1, 1938 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date20,680/34 Australia July 18, 1935 663,612 Germany Aug. 10, 1938

